Can I move out of state with my child if the father has no custody or visitation rights and is ordered to pay child support? 17 Answers as of July 04, 2013

I am leaving state with my daughter and her dad has no custody of any kind and has not set up visitation. Can I get in trouble? He has no rights at all. He is just ordered to pay support. I am losing everything and have no place to go but with family out of state.

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Under Washington law if there were a parenting plan in place you would be required to give 60 days notice of intent to relocate and the parenting plan would probably have to be modified. If there is no parenting plan, then you should be able to move without having to take any other action.

If you got your support through a Governmental Family Support Agency case, your risk of custody/visitation problems would be far less than if you got your support through a Paternity case. In a Support Agency case, only support is litigated, whereas in a Paternity case, custody, visitation, support and attorney's fees are litigated. If you got your support through a Paternity case, you would best seek to enter a written agreement with the father allowing you to move to the other state, and if he refuses,file an Order to Show Cause seeking Court permission to move away with your daughter. You wouldn't need to do those things if you got your support through a Support Agency case, but dad may thereafter seek parentage rights in a Paternity Case. Before you have lived in the other state for six (6) months, California will remain the child's "home state" for custody litigation. If no custody litigation has been begun in California during that period, after you have lived in the other state for over six (6) months, that state will become the child's "home state", and any custody litigation would thereafter have to take place in that state.

If there is no court order specifying where the child is to reside or giving the father some specific schedule or time to spend with the child you should be free to relocate without the father's permission. If the ONLY court order in existence is the one that establishes child support, it is unlike there is any current judicial limit on your decision-making authority. However, if the father chooses to initiate judicial action to obtain some specific parenting time rights, the judge will need to decide based on the best interests of the child and that could result in some requirements to return the child periodically to spend time with the father. Unless and until the father actually begins a court action, however, you should be free to move.

If his paternity has been established through an administrative action, such as when you established child support, then no, you cannot just leave the state without either his written consent or prior court approval. If you do, he can force you to bring the child back. However, that said, if he has no contact at all with the child, then it is likely that a judge would permit the move and/or potentially not force you to bring the child back. It would be best to consult with an attorney to assist you with the proper procedures.

In Louisiana, even if you have "sole custody," the father has some parental rights, including the right to oppose relocation. According to our relocation statute you must file a court proceeding to obtain authorization to leave the state with the child, and the father must be served or otherwise receive due process. If you truly have sole custody and the father has no visitation, the court will more likely than not grant your request. An exception to this rule is if the other parent is the subject of a family violence protective order, in which case the relocation statute does not apply.

You may be able to move out of state. However, you are likely going to have to comply with the terms of the state relocation act, depending upon your exact circumstances. If you have any court orders relating to the child, there is probably a summary of the act in those. You should probably consider consulting an attorney to be sure you have complied with the statute.

You did not mention if you were married to the child's father, but *assuming you were not,* you are free to go where you want absent orders of the court to the contrary. If you have ANY court orders allowing visitation or assign any custodial rights to the father, then you need to discuss your options with a local domestic relations attorney.

I assume that you are not married to the childs father and that the child has never been legitimized. Based on this information, you should be free to leave the state with your child and live wherever you choose to live.

If there is not a court order preventing you from moving, you are free to do so. It is unclear from your question though whether or not the father sees the child? If he does, you should provide him with notice of your move and appropriate contact information.

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